August 8 (this instance of the expanding chain) is located at 10 Lebovic Ave., Unit 3A, in Toronto's east end Scarborough, near Warden and Eglinton. If this location seems familiar, it's because it was the premises of Tatami until its unfortunate recent demise. August 8 was quite busy because it just opened, but there were tables available. AYCD pop is available but it is $3.99 which is rather excessive. Even the tea is $1.99 but I opted for that in preference to plain water. Ginger is not dyed pink. Chopsticks are thankfully reusables. Soy at table was very rich and flavourful and dark while not being salty which is good; it was also very fresh.
Miso soup was excellent, rich savoury and full of interesting flavour. Hot and sour soup was good although a bit dilute and had a strange aroma. Green salad was quite good with a mild house dressing.
Deep fried scallops (surimi) were quite good and the sauce was not overly hot, and quite tasty. Shrimp tempura was a bit oily and not very light or flaky, but was still tasty, although the sauce was a bit dilute. Crab surimi tempura was a little more light and flaky. Salmon taco I thought would have been a little more spicy, but it was still enjoyable. Gyoza were quite good and went well with the dipping sauce albeit dilute.
Philadelphia roll was very good with fresh salmon and enough cream cheese. Salmon nigiri was fresh enough and a good size and went well with the soy sauce. Red snapper (aka tilapia) and butterfish (aka escolar) were also fresh and quite good. Red tuna was excellent and super-fresh, and with the soy and ginger took on a whole new level of flavour. Surf clam nigiri was also very fresh and good.
Deep-fried chicken cutlet aka chicken katsu or torikatsu had excellent slightly smoky seasoning and good sauce and just the right amount... was so good even Mishy liked it. Chicken teriyaki was good and had a nice sauce and again Mishy said it was “rubbery” and again still can’t figure that out, although it was the same size as little erasers. We both liked the steak teriyaki and the sauce was nice. Chicken skewers were delicious with a Thai inspired seasoning. Beef skewers were made with beef that is going off; although it was edible, it was noticeable that it was not fresh so probably was put in the skewers to get rid of it. Yam tempura was quite good and light and flaky, but broccoli tempura was very oily and this was a large heavily breaded piece of broccoli that soaked up the frying oil. Steamed pork bun dim sum was delicious.
For dessert, assorted cakes were tiramisu, cheesecake and a chocolate cream puff. Mango ice cream was very good and creamy. Banana tempura were both made with green banana so were not very sweet and strangely ours was served with a leaf like a salad, as were are the sesame balls which very good and peanutty. Green tea ice cream was good and fresh. Mango pudding was good but understated. Vanilla ice cream was semi-French vanilla and was also quite good and very fresh; none of the ice creams were even slightly freezer burned. Weekend lunch is $30.99. This is slightly more than average even for the area, plus the excessive AYCD fountain pop adds to it. And undeniably there were some excellent offerings, but further weighing are the off beef skewers and three dilute soups/sauces. We still had a good lunch but there is room for improvement.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
